Garden Planner, Nov. 16

Nov. 15, 2013

Written by

Stephanie Bruner

Special to the Register

This week

• Trim dead or damaged branches out of shrubs and trees — they’re more likely to break (causing tears in bark and damage to other branches on the way down) during winter snow and ice storms.

• Empty the gas tank on your lawnmower. Clean the blades and the underside of the mower. Change or clean the air filter and change the oil, and if the blades need to be sharpened, have that done now instead of waiting until you’re ready to use it next spring.

• Store liquid fertilizers and chemicals where they won’t freeze. (And of course, be sure that they’re safely stowed out of reach of children and pets.)

• Plant amaryllis in pots that are only an inch or two wider than the bulb. You can plant several together in one larger pot — just keep at least an inch of space between bulbs.

This month

• Loosely tie stems of upright junipers, arborvitaes and yews together to keep them from being bent and broken by heavy snow or ice loads. Inexpensive nylon stockings make good, soft, durable plant ties that won’t rub against the stems. Or wind twine around the entire plant to hold it together. (Don’t forget to cut the ties off in spring.)

• Houseplants that you’ve moved back indoors are probably shedding leaves and looking a little sad. That’s normal — they need a few weeks to adjust to the darker, drier conditions indoors. A sunny south or west window is the best location for most houseplants, but make sure they’re not close enough for the leaves to touch the window — as the weather gets colder, the leaves may actually freeze on the glass.

• Make sure the top inch of soil is dry before you water houseplants — they’re not growing as rapidly as they did in warm weather, and it’s easy to overwater.